Burdekin plum
Pleiogynium timorense, Fam. Anacardiaceae
Medium tree with a shapely, bushy crown that is deciduous and has reddish new growth. It is sometimes buttressed in well watered sites and has separate male and female trees. The bark is rough, hard, grey with a slightly flaky appearance.
| Weed Category: | |
| Weed: | No |
| Form or habit: | Med tree |
| Family: | Anacardiaceae |
| Leaf: | Alternate, pinnate, with a true terminal leaflet. Leaflets 5 to 11, elliptic to ovate, base often oblique, glossy dark green above, dull and paler below, pocket like domatia conspicuous. Petioles exude watery sap when broken. New growth hairy. |
| Flower conspicuous: | Conspicuous |
| Flower colour: |
Cream |
| Flower description: | Cream, male flowers in panicles, female flowers in slender racemes. Autumn to summer. |
| Fruit conspicuous: | Conspicuous |
| Fruit colour: |
Purple |
| Fruit: | |
| Fruit description: | Drupes, 2-4cm with a woody pumpkin-shaped endocarp enclosed in fleshy, edible, exocarp that is purple when ripe. April to October. |
| Habitat: | Gallery (riverine or riparian) forest, littoral rainforest, rainforest. |
| Distribution | Queensland, New South Wales, New Guinea, Melanesia, Malesia. |
| Food source for: | Fruit eaten by the red-legged pademelon and eastern tube nosed bat but likely to be eaten by a range of other frugivorous species and in particular mammals. |
| Toxicity: | No toxicity known |
| Origin: | Australia, New Guinea, Melanesia, Malesia. |
| Notes: | Deciduous. A hardy tree that can tolerate extended dry periods but requires good light and drainage. Grow from cuttings or fresh seed, germination is sometimes slow and erratic. The fruit is edible and pleasant when fully ripe although often tart and suitable for preserves. The fruit was collected by Sir Joseph Banks in north Queensland while the Endeavour was being repaired. Early settlers apparently buried the fruit in sugar bags for a week to enhance ripening. |
| Information sources: | Melzer R. & Plumb J. (2007) Plants of Capricornia. |
